Diego Godin: 'Koke is a big miss'

Atletico Madrid defender Diego Godin has admitted that Koke's absence from the squad is 'a big loss' for the capital outfit.

Koke, 23, is currently struggling with a thigh problem and has not been included in the Atleti squad for Wednesday's Champions League fixture against Benfica.

Godin has said that Koke is "important defensively and in attack", but is confident that his team have the personnel available to adequately replace the Spanish international.

"Koke is important for the team. He's important defensively and in attack. He's not available but there's a lot of talk about the Atletico squad. It's very competitive and someone else will take his place," AS quotes Godin as saying.

Koke is also a doubt for Sunday's Madrid derby against Real Madrid in the league.